Safety seal closures



Dec. 16, 1958 A. KUNDERT sAFE'fY SEAL CLOSURES Filed July 10, 1957 INVENTOR.

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JlllJL 2,864,521 SAFETY SEAL CLOSURES Alex Kundert, Ruschlikon, Switzerland Application July 10, 1957, Serial No. 671,020

3 Claims. (Cl. 215-42) This invention pertains to closures for bottles, jars, and other receptacles, and in particular to closures which are tamperproof and must be mutilated to effect their removal.

Numerous tamperproof closures have been developed in the prior art. Many of these are of such a design and construction that they require several operations in their fabrication, so that they are relatively expensive. Moreover, many of these prior art closures are comprised of several parts which not only add to the cost of fabrication but also will cause considerable inconvenience in assembling them with the bottle, jar, or other receptacle. This is particularly of consequence in large volume operations where the closures are assembled by machinery.

' Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide a tamperproof closure for jars, bottles, and receptacles that is novel in construction.

Another object of the invention is to provide a tamperproof closure that may be easily and economically fabricated.

A further object of the invention is to provide a tamperproof closure of a unitary and integrated construction.

A still further object of the invention is 'to provide a tamperproof closure which is easily assembled with the bottle, jar, or any other receptacle with which it may be used.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent upon further development of the specification, with reference to the drawings.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation view of the closure embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is similar to the view shown in Figure l with the closure rotated 90.

Figure 3 is a side elevation in section showing the closure in sealing position with a bottle.

Figure 4 is an end view of the closure.

Figure 5 is a side view in section of the closure showing it partially removed after it has been in sealing position.

Figure 6 is a side elevation view of the closure in a disassembled form.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2, there is shown a sealing portion generally denoted by the numeral 10. The sealing portion in the preferred embodiment is fabricated from some flexible and resilient material such as polyethylene or some other suitable material. It is conceivable that the closure may be fabricated from a duetile metal such as aluminum, tin, or copper. The sealing portion 10 is provided with the flutes 11 for decorative purposes and to facilitate gripping of the closure during assembly and removal with or from the bottle.

At the lower end of the sealing portion 10 is the annular shoulder 12 to which is secured the lip 13 as best shown in Figure 3. The lip 13 is provided with the annular groove 14 which receives the flangelike portion 15 of the annular ring 16. As was mentioned previously, the material used in the fabrication of the closure is preferably atent one having resilient and flexible properties. The properties enable the construction as shown in Figure 3 to resiliently secure the annular ring 16 to the sealing portion 10 by the engagement of the fiangelike portion 15 with the groove 14. Thus the annular ring 16 may be snapped in and out of engaging position with the sealing portion 10.

As best shown in Figure l, the annular ring 16 is joined to the sealing portion 10 by the bridge member 17. The bridge member 17 is joined at one end 18 to the sealing portion 10 and at the other end to the lower edge of the annular ring 16. Since the bridge member 17 is fabricated from the same flexible material mentioned previously, the annular ringmay be rotated from a coaxial position with the sealing portion 10 to a completely nonaligned position as shownin Figure 6. In this manner it can be best visualized that the entire closure can be fabricated by stamping or molding from a single sheet of plastic material in a single operation. For example, if the closure were to be molded from a plastic material, a cavity for the sealing portion would form one element of the. mold and and a cavity for the annular ring would form another element of the mold, the two elements being joined by a groove or passage for the bridge member.

As best shown in Figure 3, the sealing portion 10 is provided with the threads 20 which engage like threads on the bottle 21. In the preferred embodiment the sealing portion 10 is provided with the downwardly extending cuplike portion 22. This portion co-operates with the lip 23 of. the bottle 21 to form the sealing engagement between the closure and the bottle.

On the internal surface of the annular ring 16 there are a plurality of circumferentially arranged ratchet teeth 24. These teeth are adapted to engage similar teeth 25 on the neck of the bottle 21. As best shown in Figure 3, the teeth 25 are at the outer extremity of the shoulder 26 to insure adequate engagement with the ratchet teeth 24. The direction of the ratchet teeth 24 is such that they may be slid over the teeth 25 when the closure is being turned toward sealing position. Conversely the direction of the ratchet teeth 24 is such that they will not permit the ratchet teeth 24 to be slid over the teeth 25 when the closure is being turned in the opposite direction. One important advantage of the annular ring 16 as disclosed is that its resilient and flexible characteristics allow it to readily conform to the shape of the shoulder 26 and thus enhance the gripping action between the teeth 25 and the ratchet teeth 24. This is particularly important because the tolerances of most bottles are rather inaccurate.

Referring now to Figure 5, the closure is shown in the partially removed position after it has been in sealing engagement with the bottle. As was mentioned previously, once the closure is in sealing engagement, the annular ring 16 cannot be turned in the disengaging direction. Thus, in order to remove the closure from the bottle, it is necessary to rupture the bridge member 17 so that the annular rings 16 and the sealing portion 10 are separated. This may be done by applying force directly to the sealing portion 10 suflicient to turn it with respect to the bottle and at the same time rupture the bridge member 17 The bridge member 17 may also be ruptured by grasping one of its ends and tearing it loose from either the sealing portion 10 or the annular ring 17. Once the bridge member 17 is ruptured, the annular ring 16 is easily parted from the sealing portion due to the resiliency of the lip 13. After the closure has been removed or partially removed, it is impossible to rejoin the torn ends of the bridge member 17. Thus, removal of the closure is indicated by the torn bridge member 17. Conversely, if the bridge member 17 is whole, there is proof that the closure has not been tampered with.

From the foregoing description, it can be seen that the closure may be assembled with the bottle by merely placing the former on the bottle and turning it toward sealing position. This simple operation is brought about by the unitary construction of the closure. This is particularly important where a large volume operation is involved and the sealing is accomplished by machinery.

As was mentioned previously, the closure in the preferred embodiment is fabricated from some flexible and resilient material such as one of the many plastics. Such plastics are capable of being imbued with decorative colors or designs. In this manner the contents or the origin of the contents may be identified by the design or color of the closure and at the same time present an attractive appearance.

In the foregoing description, although certain elements and materials have been named, it is to be understood that these are merely by way of example and not by way of limitation. It is apparent that certain modifications may be made within the scope of the claims .without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A closure member for bottles, jars, and other receptacles, of flexible and resilient material comprising a sealing portion internally threaded and adapted to engage like threads on the receptacle,a downwardly extending shoulder on the lower edge of said sealing portion, an annular ring resiliently secured to said downwardly extending shoulder, a bridge member being secured at one end to the lower edge of said sealing portion, the other end of said bridge member being secured to said annular ring, said annular ring being provided with a plurality of internal ratchet teeth adapted to engage one or more like teeth on said receptacle, whereby removal of said closure will rupture said bridge member.

2. A closure member for bottles, jars, and other receptacles, of flexible and resilient material comprising a sealing portion adapted to engage said receptacle, a downwardly extending shoulder on the lower edgeof said sealing portion, an annular ring resiliently secured to said downwardly extending shoulder, a bridge member being secured at one end to the lower edge of said sealing portion, the other end of said bridge member being secured to said annular ring, said annular ring being provided with a plurality of internal ratchet teeth adapted to engage one or more like teeth on said receptacle, whereby removal of said closure member from sealing engagement with said bottle will rupture said bridge member.

3. A unitary closure member for bottles, jars, and other receptacles, of flexible and resilient material comprising a sealing portion internally threaded and adapted to engage like threads on said receptacle, a downwardly extending shoulder on the lower edge of said sealing portion, an annular ring resiliently secured to said downwardly extending shoulder, a bridge member being secured at one end to the lower edge of said sealing portion, the other end of said bridge member being secured to said annular ring, said annular ring being provided with a plurality of internal ratchet teeth adapted to engage one or more like teeth on said receptacle, said ratchet teeth co-operating with said like teeth to permit rotation of said closure members in one direction, whereby removal of said closure will rupture said bridge member.

1 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,122,294 Regan June 28, 1938 2,124,638 Sheldon et a1 July 26, 1938 2,134,178 Esposito Oct. 25, 1938 

